SOLUTIONS TO A MODIFIED TOOL LOADING PROBLEM FOR A SINGLE FMM

Due to the common experience of changing production requirements, many flexible manufacturing machines (FMM) must be used to produce parts r equiring more tools than the tool magazine can hold. Tool changes must then be made during jobs as well as between jobs. Many previously dev eloped solutions to the tool loading problem are not capable of obtain ing optimal schedules in this modified problem. This is remedied throu gh a unique solution involving job splitting that provides better solu tions to a generalized tool loading problem than previously obtained. By additionally allowing concurrent job and tool changing, a new optim al tooling policy is obtained that is useful either with previously de veloped job scheduling heuristics, or the algorithm presented in this paper.